Was Michael Yon Targeted For Harassment by DHS?

I'm really bad for getting around to this so late, but Michael Yon was hassled at the Seattle airport as he came back after nearly a year overseas:

Got arrested at the Seattle airport for refusing to say how much money I make. (The uniformed ones say I was not "arrested", but they definitely handcuffed me.) Their videos and audios should show that I was polite, but simply refused questions that had nothing to do with national security. Port authority police eve...ntually came -- they were professionals -- and rescued me from the border bullies.

Over at Blackfive, Laughing Wolf wrote about the incident, and someone calling themselves "Johnnie von Bernhardi" responded back in detail, challenging Yon's account, straight up calling him a liar.

Interestingly enough, von Bernhardi provides Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with a motive:

Yon actually has a history with CBP. His Thai girlfriend got stopped and questioned by CBP and he has a hissy fit afterward.

The "history" they speak of isn't of a problem with Yon passing through customs, but of publishing this article that detailed the bullying behavior of a CBP officer experience by a friend of Yon's.

And von Bernhardi? He/she posts from a socket-puppet Department of Homeland Security IP address both as Von Bernhardi and as Nicole on Blackfive.

While there is certain to be another official explanation for their behavior, the DHS sockpuppet makes it clear that CBP was both known to them and on their bad side before he attempted to re-enter the country.

I'll let you ponder what that may mean on your own.

As for his part, Yon is a fighter. He's challenged DHS to release the video-tapes of his harassment and may attempt to file a libel suit against DHS for the comment at Blackfive calling him a liar.

Let me tell you a little about what I know of Michael Yon. We've worked together on several stories in the past, and his concern for accuracy and fairness in reporting is second to none. If I had to weigh his integrity versus that of a person who leaves sock-puppeted comments under multiple aliases in a blog's comments, I'm going with Mike's account all the way, without reservations.

And if Janet Napolitano's DHS is targeting critics for harrassment, they certainly picked the wrong former Green Beret to start in on.

Update: Laughing Wolf says via email that Nicole claims she is not von Bernhardi. Duly noted.